Chapter 8 Summary

Twain marvels at his decision not to travel through Spain to Paris. Upon arrival at Tangier, Twain comes to the conclusion that this was his primary destination all along. The disappointment of the trip so far is due to the lack of foreignness of the foreign lands they have so far visited. Tangier pulls is definitely full of "foreignness." Nothing at all about Tangier is familiar to the pilgrims, which is what Twain loves about it. The culture is historically rich, although the people generally poor. Everything Twain looks upon in Tangier dates back thousands of years with the customs of the Bedouins, the Jews and the Moors as fresh now as they were centuries ago.

The value of money is not as important as it is in the American culture. Twain notes that many people choose to be poor or at least...